


Observations on the pathology of Xu Minghao’s moodiness

by sheepweeps



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Actor Wen Jun Hui | Jun, Artist Xu Ming Hao | The8, Comedy, Dispatch works hard but Soonyoung works harder, Fluff and Humor, I wanted it to sound like a thesis title but I failed, Jealous Minghao, M/M, Minghao’s a drama queen, Romance, Soonyoung is a caring friend, Soonyoung thinks Minghao is an anti fan, Soonyoung’s pov of Junhao, implied dancer Kwon Soonyoung, the title is a joke
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:28:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28574547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sheepweeps/pseuds/sheepweeps
Summary: Soonyoung has been really confused with what’s happening with Minghao’s emotions lately. He doesn’t even know why he’s invested with what’s happening but maybe one thing is for sure:Xu Minghao’s emotional imbalance is because of certain factors of hate (?) that relate to a celebrity named Wen Junhui.
Relationships: Wen Jun Hui | Jun/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Comments: 6
Kudos: 119





	Observations on the pathology of Xu Minghao’s moodiness

**Author's Note:**

> [soonyoung’s pov but it’s filled with minghao panicking in front of him]
> 
> If there are any errors I’ll edit it later.

If you ask who Minghao is to Soonyoung he will tell you that he was one of his closest friends that to this day forward buys him reasonable gifts on his birthdays. He is a longtime companion that  _ unwillingly _ stayed through thick and thin during college where even a single cup of ramen was a tough purchase. Soonyoung considers Minghao as a brother to him who just sometimes has an off day.

Additionally Minghao is one of those people who liked to start their day lounging in the balcony near a potted plant while meditating with a cup of tea perched next to him. He is also the type of guy to quip a remark with a hint of life lessons sprinkled into it while you forget to charge your phone before riding a train. 

So yes, he does know a lot about his younger friend and he would consider himself as someone who knows the most about Minghao,  _ Mingyu be damned _ . 

For someone who’s sharing an apartment with Minghao the only difficulty he faces is when the man comes home with an annoyed look; his lips are tightly pressed and his eyes are piercing the cool tiger knick knack he bought. 

It’s odd for the male to look upset and heave a sigh out of frustration without telling him the reason. Sometimes Minghao is smiling and that alone makes him feel like his _ ‘brother from another mother’ _ card was revoked and clutched by some different friend. It’s been going on for a year and he still doesn’t know why. 

So far Minghao hasn’t mentioned any romantic relationship or someone he was seeing so maybe that was not it. He was also doing great with his art career and one of his paintings was displayed in a gallery recently. So the only thing that leads back to the reasons why is that Minghao is just a drama queen most of the time.

A caring side of Soonyoung was actually concerned of Minghao’s wellbeing but the mischievous side of him was curious as to why he was acting strange. So he created an inventory in his brain of Minghao’s strange behavior (the storage for his college education taking a hit) and reactions that stood out to him and good news: it was completely useless!

What his intense investigation and research from his friend had acquired is just that his fashion taste suits his mood; dark shades of blue is an indicator that he needs someone to rant, gray as a hint to let him be and sulk and black when he’s feeling great after recovering from his mood swing.

Minghao also gets increasingly fussy every time he talks about the show Soonyoung’s been watching and whenever the radio is on the buzz actors station. 

It’s not an everyday occurence for Minghao to be deep into thought and moody but it’s been more frequent.

He doesn’t even know why he’s invested with Minghao’s emotional range and so he planned to set the matter out of his own hands. However, during his dinner with a cup of rice on hand and a cold water beside him he realized one thing that stands out. It doesn’t actually make sense but it also does, and if he does say it verbally it sounds like he was just delusional.

Soonyoung tried to make it make sense and create a logical hypothesis of what his thoughts were while separating his rice grains and it was:

_ = Xu Minghao’s emotional imbalance is because of certain factors of hate (?) that relate to a celebrity named Jun. Wen Junhui. _

And after forming that statement Soonyoung laughed and choked on his food which earned a concerned face from Minghao. He didn’t stop laughing which caused Minghao to tell him to continue choking out the grilled pork. 

It was something he was also having a hard time to believe in since Wen Junhui is considered as one of the most esteemed actors in the industry and is arguably a talented person who can do everything in terms of art. Wen Junhui has everyone who consumes any form of social media wrapped around his finger and what he does is kiss the hands who’s surging for him because he is literally an angel in a human form.

So you might ask how Wen Junhui, a top tier celebrity is able to affect the artsy fashionista that is Xu Minghao? 

Let him list down situations that stood out from his point of view and narrow it down while in the process.

  
  


  * **Television and the simple actions that turned into implications.**



Soonyoung has observed an extreme reaction from Minghao most of the time when he watches television during the afternoon and it was incredibly hard to discern why. He likes watching that one specific sappy romance show with a typical plot with a cool male lead protecting his love interest and Minghao sometimes throws a subtle fit about how lame it was. 

And the lead male actor is Wen Junhui.

You might disagree with what he was going to tell you but Soonyoung assures you that it was that particular actor that causes Minghao to have emotional constipation that ranges from a disgruntled six feet tall boy that needs tea to a vexed debate team leader that needs to sit down. Because Soonyoung only watches one show called ‘Blossoming Hours’ aside from the dance competition. And everytime the show soundtrack plays he hears a sigh at the kitchen whenever Minghao is at home.

A particular situation related to this topic went like this:

Two months ago he was casually lounging on the sofa after work and his mind was focused on the scene: the female lead was crying in the rain after being forced to leave her home, her tears and snot being washed away by the trickling raindrops and Jun comes there and sweeps her of her feet. Faces inching towards each other, breath hitching and before the iconic kiss Soonyoung has anticipated for the past six episodes comes a black screen. 

And Minghao was there holding the plug with a face so stiff he looked like a statue from one of his art galleries. He looked like he would have smashed the television with the fire extinguisher near the counter if it weren’t for the huge sum they had to save for it.

After a few seconds of Soonyoung waiting for Minghao to explain himself, he realized he was the one who should ask about it. “Uh, so why did you plug it off?”

“Our electricity bill has been getting a bit pricey lately.” Minghao replied, his hands still holding the plug.

“We just paid it yesterday, and we have a lot of savings? Do you need money? I have extra if you-“

Minghao cuts him off, his lips pressing together. “No, I mean you know I’ve read something from the internet that television is bad for your um- physical health and we don’t want that happening to you.” 

“Don’t worry about me Minghao! You know I’m too tough to let my body go frail!” Soonyoung smiled, his dense-self smiling at his friend.

Soonyoung stands up and tries to take the plug from the other but his friend sees what he was trying to do and hides it behind his back. “Come on, I’ve been waiting for that cheesy scene for ages, gimme!”

“Oh come on, it’s not even that good. Like who wants to watch a beautiful man kiss a girl while they get wet from rain!” Minghao gestures with his free hand like he’s talking about financial savings with Soonyoung looking at him with a pout. 

“They don’t even care about their health and after filming they get sick and you have to take care of him because you get worried but he does it again and it’s an endless process of-“ Minghao abruptly stops and seals his lips close along with his eyes.

“So?” The older says after a silent minute of standing in the living room.

“Yeah. Here you go.” Minghao gives him the plug and scurries to the bathroom telling him he needs to take a bath.

Soonyoung plugged the television back, the sound of the song for the credits playing as it echoed through the room with the light reflecting the picture frames they hung. 

He looked at the spot Minghao was originally at and wondered why his friend would need a shower when he just saw him with a towel and dripping hair fifty minutes ago.

Soonyoung lets it go and sighed when he saw the next show playing. 

Maybe Minghao is a part of the anti Wen Junhui club? Because he even crouched down to plug it off and even rambled excuses for it without thoroughly judging Soonyoung’s preferences because Minghao doesn’t want him to get upset.

  
  


However, an occurrence from just a month ago sets Soonyoung off with his friend’s past action. 

Because it was completely the opposite from what happened from the first.

They were eating on the counter with the television on for some background noise and since they neglected using the dvd they bought and instead ate some takeout. 

Just like fate the show was about a celebrity interview and who is it if it’s not Wen Junhui smiling at the screen and lighting up their whole living room! 

Soonyoung with the remote on hand was about to change the channel when Minghao told him not to and even asked him to increase the volume. He was there feeling like an idiot with his mouth filled with food while increasing the volume as Minghao wished. 

Because why would the suspected anti Wen Junhui fan club president Xu Minghao, who most of the time would turn bitter every time is now clearly invested with what was on the screen?

Soonyoung then turned a blind eye and continued eating while listening to the show.

_ “Hello! Welcome again to our daily interviews! Today we’re glad to tell you that we have been given an opportunity to meet with a top tier actor that has been scoring blockbusters with his movies and high rates from a new drama! Wen Junhui!” _

_ “Hello you can call me Jun if that’s okay with you”  _

_ “Then Jun, thank you for letting us meet with you.” _

_ “The pleasure is all mine.” _

_ “Oh say, we’ve heard that you’ve been scoring a lot of roles this year. What has been your favorite show when it comes to filming.” _

_ “Well, I’ve had fun with every show I’ve filmed in but the most recent show I’m in which is ‘Blossoming Hours’ gave me a lot of opportunities to have more friends from the cast and the staff are very accommodating.” _

_ “I see. Regarding the amount of projects you’ve had this year, how did you manage to balance your work and personal life.” _

_ “Throughout this year I’ve had difficulty when it comes to my personal life since my workload tends to be overwhelming...” _

Soonyoung then stopped munching, he faced the television and he saw Jun’s face at ease and his hands gesturing out small actions. He suddenly paused and glanced at Minghao’s hands and looked at the screen again.

“Hey Minghao” Soonyoung snapped his fingers to get some attention.

“What?” His friend did not even look at his face as he was too invested with what he was watching.

“You have the same ring like Jun’s” He points at the screen.

A familiar stretch of awkward silence between the two can be observed as the television continues to play.

_ “But I try my best to visit my family whenever I have time and especially now I know someone’s always waiting for me to come back home.” _

Minghao then taps his fingers on the table, a small blush gracing his ears. “I don’t know, it’s just a coincidence.”

_ “Well Jun, you did say someone is waiting for you. Do you mind telling us if you’re in a relationship as of the moment?” _

_ “Yes I am, but I still don’t want to introduce them to the public.”  _

Soonyoung glanced at Minghao and was about to tell him how lucky that person was but then he saw his friend smiling at the screen like an idiot. 

Therefore the potential of Minghao being the anti fan of Jun lessened to a seventy-six percent. And maybe Soonyoung was too focused on the numbers, but he thinks he just heard Minghao mumble the words ‘as you should’

But what Soonyoung didn’t see is Minghao’s hand fiddling with the ring carefully, his hand touching the steel with a lovestruck expression.

  
  


  * **Newspapers about speculations and his inconsistent emotions.**



After the incident of watching Wen Junhui’s interview, that night Minghao was smiling the whole time they were together. They watched a movie and all throughout the film the younger was grinning. It was not a problem if he was smiling during a comedy, however Soonyoung thinks he should be concerned that they were watching a horror film. 

Soonyoung should be delighted that his friend was happy for no apparent reason but he was scared. Not because of Minghao’s smile that was actually pretty neat but because of how fast his mood swerved the next day.

That particular morning, Soonyoung was quietly waiting for his toast before coming to work. He still had about an hour before riding a train to the dance studio. So he propped up his feet while enjoying his day.

Minghao immediately came, his cheek had a stroke of yellow paint and his eyes are now glaring daggers at his tiger knick knack again. And he was wearing a dark blue shirt which meant he’ll be needing to prepare his ears. 

The younger placed the newspaper in front of him and he quickly read through it and heard the tapping foot of the person standing beside him. The article read:

_ Actor Wen Junhui Mystery Partner Revealed! _

“So you wanna talk about it?” Soonyoung said as he grabbed the toast.

“It’s just this type of news is always written in the newspaper! Why do people take the time to write this piece of rubbish and they be like ‘oh wow that’s so interesting!” 

Minghao grabbed the chair next to him and continued talking without pausing for air. 

“We don’t need any type of celebrities personal life being shoved into our minds, we need headlines about important news like politics! And you know what? Who even buys a newspaper?!”

“Well, you just placed a newspaper in front of me right now-” Soonyoung smiles at his friends and points at the said paper. 

Minghao looked at him steadily and replied. “I mean who would read something about a rumour that is blatantly false.”

“Minghao, you were reading it just now.”

The said man just placed his head on the table as Soonyoung pats his back while finishing his toast.

“Oh, the female lead from the show I watch is the rumored person Jun’s in a relationship with?”

“Yeah, guess that’s some good exposure for the show huh?”

Soonyoung for the nth time looked at Minghao out of confusion. “Why are you even invested in this?”

“I’m not.” The younger huffed an indignant sigh.

“Yes you are and you kinda look like you hate Jun.”

Minghao placed his face on his palm and tilted, he looked at Soonyoung embarrassingly. “Right now I am.”

He didn’t understand why Minghao was too engrossed with the news. Maybe he was just having a hard time with what he was doing so he got stressed over something like this too?

He looked at his watch and stood up when he realized he only has forty minutes for transportation which was never enough in terms of the distance. Soonyoung didn’t want to see the younger man sulk all day so he grabbed his bag and keys and patted Minghao’s head which earned him a sigh.

“Tell you what, let’s watch something later you choose and I’ll even drink some wine with you.”

He left after seeing a small smile from Minghao and hurried to the station.

And while he was figuring this scene out, a small part of Soonyoung thinks that Minghao didn’t in fact hate Jun but alongside that he was also confused why his friend is acting like that. 

Why would Minghao be mad for Wen Junhui’s sake if the rumour is not even related to him at all? It was obvious his friend didn’t like how much attention the actor was getting because of a relationship.

So his belief of Minghao being an anti fan of Jun dwindled to forty percent, the fifty percent being the unknown while the ten percent is his belief that maybe Minghao  _ is _ a part of his fan club.

  
  


When Soonyoung got home he was expecting Minghao to be in the extra room which they have turned into his studio but what greeted him was his friend staring at a bouquet placed on the counter. The white petals of the gardenias bunched up together with the lively hue of the yellow tulips as it contrasted their gray table. 

He got closer to the bouquet and saw the small note Minghao was looking at. He only saw the words ‘i’m sorry, i’ll see you soon’ with a drawing of a smiling cat next to it before Minghao put it inside his pocket. 

“Who’s it from?” 

Minghao held the petals gently, inspecting the edges with his fingers. “Oh, just someone from...work” 

Soonyoung knows that Minghao’s not good at lying, he’s even failing it right now. “We’re keeping secrets now hm? And why do you get flowers? I want one too.”

“Maybe if you stop being too dense with a certain someone then you can get one too.” 

“What are you talking about?” Soonyoung asked

Minghao looked at him with a smile. “Nothing. Can we start drinking now?”

“You’re not sad anymore, you drink it by yourself.” 

“Oh come on, I’m cooking for the both of us tonight if you do.”

“Deal.”

Later that night as they watched the film from Minghao’s choice he looked at his friend and saw his plastered grin after coming back from a quick phone call.

Soonyoung doesn’t know why but his list is becoming too ridiculous as it was straying away from his intention of figuring out what’s happening to his friend. And if he was misled to believe that it was about Wen Junhui, because that assumption was too far fetched.

Maybe he should continue this list of scenarios but not get entirely focused on Jun?

  
  


  * **A painting made through affection and the inspiration himself.**



Soonyoung was entirely wrong with his statement.

He should be focused entirely on Wen Junhui and not because of his very first speculation.

Today Soonyoung went to find Minghao to tell him he’ll be out late, he went to his art studio and found Minghao focused on a wide canvas, his hand precise as he held the paintbrush.

He secretly peaked and saw an almost finished portrait of a young man. The male in the painting looked stunning; his eyes were droopy yet piercing the observer, his face was sharp along with his nose and the plush lips that smiled with purity. 

It seemed like the man was someone Minghao had seen up-close, traced the dip of his nose and saw how his eyelashes fluttered. And to Soonyoung the subject of the portrait looked oddly familiar but before he can even realize who it was, he saw Minghao pause and look at him with questioning eyes,

Soonyoung opened the door wider and held the doorknob. “I was just gonna give you a heads up that I’ll be coming home late. I'll be eating out with Wonwoo.”

“Don’t forget your keys okay?” Minghao said with a wave.

“Yeah I won’t” Soonyoung was about to exit but curiosity got the best of him. “Nice painting there, who is it?”

Minghao looked at him again and back to his work. “Thanks. Just a reference from the internet.”

“Okay, I’ll be going then. Good luck with that!” He smiled at the younger and closed the door carefully.

Soonyoung heads his way to their meeting place. But as he walked towards the pavement, a sudden realization was made: Wen Junhui is the subject of Minghao’s painting if he was right and that’s why it looked familiar. 

He lets it go and saves the information for tomorrow to ask Minghao and tease him about his muse.

After all, he was going to enjoy himself tonight.

  
  


Soonyoung’s night was amazing, he had a lot of fun but they had a change of plan. Wonwoo had to go home earlier than expected and so the man drove him home a couple of hours early. 

With a small wave and a quick farewell he opened the small gate and saw a car parked next to their home. He got shocked when the door was open since Minghao is strict when it comes to locking up. 

Maybe they have a robber? Please no, they're not even rich for anyone to steal anything.

Soonyoung tightly knitted his lips and felt the nervous twist of his stomach. He opened the door slowly but the creak sent a loud echo throughout the apartment. 

The lights were on and a turf of brown hair was seen on the couch. What was odd is that Minghao doesn’t even have brown hair, right? 

His question was solved when Minghao’s familiar black hair popped up and his face all red alongside another man that he caught sight of. They stared at him with wide eyes as Soonyoung walked inside.

As he got closer he saw the face of the man from the painting, who he also always sees on the television and the man who he was connecting his weird theory with.

Wen Junhui looked exactly like the man he sees in the media and the absolute shock he had while standing like a proud parent while the two were silently looking at him was entertaining. 

Who knew he was partially right with his assumption. He’s taking a fifty-five percent success rate from what he theorized. 

Minghao pushed Junhui to the other side and awkwardly sat on the edge of the sofa. “So, Soonyoung this is Jun.”

“Hi, Jun. It's good to meet you but I didn’t expect that I’ll meet you while you're hovering my friend.” Soonyoung waved at him with a smile.

“It’s nice to meet you too.” Junhui replied, and waved back.

“I’ll leave you to it. But let’s talk about all this tomorrow morning.” Soonyoung scurried to his room after he saw a nod from a flustered Minghao.

He went straight to his bed with a satisfied grin. A case solved and new information found, it was indeed a fun night. 

Soonyoung feels like an idiot because how could he not see what was truly happening? Minghao’s eyes filled with jealousy, the worried gaze he gave whenever he heard about Jun’s tiring schedule, the flowers he received with the cute note and the realistic painting of Jun.

As he pulled the covers, Soonyoung can say he can rest peacefully especially when his best friend is in a loving relationship with Wen Junhui.

  
  


_ =  _ ~~_ Xu Minghao’s emotional imbalance is because of certain factors of hate that relate to a celebrity named Jun. Wen Junhui. _ ~~

_ = Xu Minghao’s emotional imbalance is because of certain factors of love that relate to a celebrity named Jun. Wen Junhui. _

  
  


* * *

  
  


“Good job tackling me on the couch, now he knows about us.” Minghao said as he change his clothes for the night,

Junhui laughed and rested his head on the pillow. “Don’t worry we’ll tell him everything tomorrow without us toppled on each other.”

“Like what? Oh I met him when my mom forced me to meet the new neighbour when I was 10!?” The younger man scooted next to him and played with Jun’s hair.

Junhui embraced Minghao, his smile not fading as he looked at his lover with a mischievous smile. “If you do I’ll also tell him how you looked like you were about to tear me in half when I asked if you wanted to play with me.”

The smaller man could only hide his face on the crook of Junhui’s neck and sighed. “I don’t know why I love you.”

“I love you too.” Junhui kissed Minghao’s head, he placed the blanket above them and called it a night.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and your thoughts are appreciated!!
> 
> -> [twitter](https://twitter.com/sheepweeps)


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